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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 124 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  2. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  3. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  4. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  5. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  6. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  7. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  8. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  9. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  10. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  11. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  12. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  13. False peace will not ________________.
  14. Did you ________________ the button?
  15. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  16. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  17. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  18. David sat on the ________________.
  19. That was a fun ________________.
  20. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  21. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  22. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  23. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  24. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. game — a kind of play
  2. game — wild animals
  3. lean — thin
  4. bank — for money
  5. bear — to put up with
  6. swing — in golf
  7. swing — music
  8. last — final
  9. file — a tool
  10. bank — of a river
  11. file — a document
  12. bank — for money
  13. last — to go on
  14. press — to push
  15. file — a line of people
  16. bear — the animal
  17. bear — the animal
  18. swing — to play on
  19. game — a match
  20. lean — to bend
  21. press — a publisher
  22. lean — to rest against
  23. last — finally
  24. press — newspapers

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com